A two-day National Workshop on Seafood Exports in Visakhapatnam brings together five Union Ministers to chart a roadmap for value addition, sustainability and expanded market access.
The Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, in collaboration with the Department of Fisheries and the Ministry of Food Processing Industries, organised a two-day National Workshop on Seafood Exports in Visakhapatnam on June 5 and June 6, 2026.
The workshop was attended by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Shri N. Chandrababu Naidu, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry, Shri Piyush Goyal, Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying and Panchayati Raj, Shri Rajiv Ranjan Singh, Union Minister for Civil Aviation, Shri Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu and Union Minister for Food Processing Industries, Shri Chirag Paswan.
Goyal noted that India’s marine products exports have increased by nearly 70% in value terms over the last decade and that India currently accounts for around 4% of global seafood trade. He called for achieving seafood exports of USD 30 billion within the next five years through value addition, branding, quality enhancement, sustainability and diversification of export markets, and encouraged exporters to leverage market access under India’s recently concluded Free Trade Agreements covering 38 countries. Rajiv Ranjan Singh noted that fish production has grown from 95.8 lakh tonnes in 2012-13 to nearly 198 lakh tonnes in 2024-25, while seafood exports reached approximately Rs 73,890 crore (USD 8.46 billion) with frozen shrimp remaining the leading export item.
Technical sessions on the second day covered traceability systems, sustainable certification, value addition, export promotion, deep-sea fisheries and the potential for a Production Linked Incentive framework for the seafood sector. Stakeholders discussed challenges including disease management, rising input costs, fishmeal availability, quarantine infrastructure, cold chain development, certification and traceability.
Discussions also highlighted the untapped potential of deep-sea resources within India’s Exclusive Economic Zone, particularly in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep, and emerging sectors such as seaweed, ornamental fisheries, cold-water fisheries and trout farming. The workshop brought together senior officials from central and state governments, representatives of MPEDA, EIC, NFDB, NABARD, NCDC, NCEL and SFAC, and exporters, processors, industry associations, startups, researchers and aquaculture farmers. The workshop concluded with a shared commitment to develop a comprehensive roadmap for enhancing India’s global competitiveness in seafood exports.
Source: Press Information Bureau (PIB)
